


The Power of Gods

by Magical_Devil_Alex



Series: DC Shenanigans [1]
Category: Captain Marvel (DC), Justice League - All Media Types, Shazam! - Fandom
Genre: 6+1 Things, Billy Batson protection squad, Gen, I will fight for his honor, Magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-18
Updated: 2018-12-19
Packaged: 2019-08-24 15:41:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 22,769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16643045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Magical_Devil_Alex/pseuds/Magical_Devil_Alex
Summary: Everyone knew Captain Marvel had the powers of gods, but never in the Justice League's life did they ever think they would come face to face with them.Or, 6 times the Justice League realized how damn powerful Captain Marvel is, and the one time they found out Billy Batson was even stronger.





	1. The Wisdom of Soloman

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! I realize it's been quite some time since I've published anything, and that this is not in my normal realm of fandoms, but hear me out! I've had a little bit of a break (school and marching band are a hassle) and now I'm ready to come back! However, I felt a little bored trying to write my other stuff, and recently my obsession and love for Captain Marvel came in full force, inspiring me to write this. Don't worry, I'm not abandoning anything else, just giving my brain a little bit of a reset. Hope you enjoy!~

Batman, or Bruce Wayne, whichever you prefer, was used to the unusual. He's seen people come back from the dead, met aliens from various planets, battled a literal joker with way too much free time, and has even gone through his fair share of magic. He thought, Hell, he  _knew_ he was well versitiled in the area of the weird and down right strange, in fact, many put him into that category.

But not even the greatest detective could have ever predicted  _this._

It was a nice night in Fawcett City, few clouds covered the twinkle of the stars and a lovely breeze made the cool air sharpen with each breath, his dark cape swirling around him. Fawcett City was so unlike Gotham, in fact, the dark knight would argue it was  _too_ unlike Gotham with it's bright sidewalks and clean streets, every civilian friendly enough to be suspicious. It almost felt like a trap; way to good to be true with no way of telling when you set off the trigger, the silent beeping of a timer slowly ticking down the bomb that would inevitably explode. Something about Fawcett City slightly unnerved Batman, though he would never let it show. Perhaps it had something to do with the man right in front of him.

_No,_ Batman corrected himself as he stepped out of the shadow of the alleyway.  _This is no man._

"Captain Marvel."

Instantly, the named hero whipped around faster than Batman could have predicted, his fists raised defensively. A stray strand of moonlight reflected off of said heroes golden gauntlets that covered his wrists, making his form slightly easier for the dark knight to see. It wasn't as if he needed the light in the first place, especially with the faint glow of lightning that pulsed from the other hero, but it made more convenient to watch Marvel's reactions and emotions. 

"Batman?" Marvel asked questioningly, his usual child like innocence and awe lacing his voice. Knowing what the dark knight knew now, his scowl deepened, frustrated that he had been fooled at all in the first place. But, if he were to be fair, how many people would actually consider it? How many people could look into Captain Marvel's eyes, knowing what kind of power he held, and think that he was nothing more than an eleven year old boy? Even with all of his years, Batman still wasn't sure he believed it himself.

"What are you doing here? Is something wrong?" the red cladded hero continued, lowering his fists and tilting his head. "Seems rather quick for that, though. After all, I did just leave the Watchtower, and you just did give the League a briefing. So, what is it that you want, sir?"

For a boy who knew next to nothing about the workings of the world, he sure seemed to have a sharp brain packed into his head. The dark knight assumed it was that wisdom of Solomon that he mentioned earlier, one of his seven powers that made up the entirety of his existence, and knowing that gave Batman even more of a resolve. He took a step closer to Marvel, who now had a small smile on his face as if he knew the secrets of the universe. Hell, the vigilante wouldn't be surprised if he did at this point.

"I think you know why I'm here,  _Billy Batson."_

The hero's smile turned sheepish, one of his hands coming up to rub the back of his neck. "Ya know, I thought I'd be able to keep my identity a secret for at least a  _little_ while, looks like I was wrong about that. But who am I to think I would keep anything away from you." Marvel sighed, his tone turning serious. "Do the others know yet?"

Batman crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes at the other. He was surprisingly calm about this whole thing, not at all like the charming and excited  personality that he had been with just an hour ago. Was it an act he put on to appear weaker than he really was, a persona to throw off the League? The dark knight didn't think so, though he could be wrong about Billy Batson. As far as he could tell, Marvel never once lied to them, even if he left out the detail about his age. 

"No. I wanted to hear if from your mouth before I did anything I would regret. So," the dark knight walked closer to Marvel until they were only a yard apart from one another. "Tell me: why shouldn't I kick you out of the League? Why should I allow a child to fight alongside us, especially since you never bothered to mentioned that one little problem in the first place?"

Marvel studied Batman for a few moments, the dark knight practically  _seeing_ the wheels turn in his head, and in the dim light Marvel's blue eyes sparkle with what looked like lightning. He wondered if Billy Batson looked like that when facing down tough challenges, determination in his bones and power in his veins. Did Billy Batson make Captain Marvel? Or did Captain Marvel make Billy Batson? He was going to find out either way, and no power from any god would stop him. 

"You have no reason to trust me,  _or_ keep me on the League," Marvel finally said, shrugging his shoulders as if it was the most casual thing he's said in his life. "I have done nothing to earn it, and now that you know, I bet you would have a tough time trusting a kid like me with the fate of the world. But know this, sir: I  _was_ planning on telling you myself, though I hoped I could have at least _tried_ to gain  _some_ trust before doing that." Marvel shook his head to himself, what little smile and joking that was still present on his face melting away. "And, also know this: while it's a great honor to fight alongside you with the League, knowing that people all over the world would look to _me_ for hope... I honestly wouldn't be mad if you decided to kick me out. After all, I've been doing this on my own for nearly two years now, and gods know Fawcett City has its own problems to deal with, whether you see it or not. I know I'm just a kid, and I know that means I'm inexperienced in the way adults are... but the one who gave me these powers, the one who decided that  _I_ was worthy enough to be trusted with this title, knew I was a kid as well. And even then, he knew that meant nothing. He knew that I would do everything in my power to protect those who can't protect themselves, and I intend on honoring that whether or not you think I'm worthy of it."

The seriousness in Marvel's voice stunned Batman, not that he would ever let it show. Even with the wisdom he possessed, it was hard to believe that a child would be able to think beyond his years in the way this one did. It almost reminded the dark knight of when  _he_ was a child, forced to grow up too early because of the uncaring world around him, forced to understand that the darkness was more prominent than the light.

But as it seemed,  _this_ child only wanted to brighten that darkness.

Just as Batman was about to respond, something faint caught his eye, right above Captain Marvel's head. It was barely even there, only noticeable due to the suits advanced technology, but there was no doubt it was there. It was the outline of a man, one with a beard and what looked like a halo around his head, along with whited out, glowing eyes. His smile was warm and his eyes held wisdom beyond any mortal could ever have, and it was then Batman knew who it was.

Solomon. The god where Marvel's wisdom came from, right in front of him. Batman was not one for gods, to believe or to worship, but to see the wisest man in the universe, knowing that he was watching over this boy, gave him some sort of hope. Perhaps Captain Marvel was a good person, someone who could be trusted.

But who was he kidding? The dark knight would never trust anyone 100 percent, even  _if_ they had the approval of all mighty beings on their side.

The vigilante tore his gaze away from the faint outline of Solomon, instead looking back at Marvel, who held a look of patience and indifference as he waited for Batman to make his decision. Though, the truth was Batman wasn't going to kick Marvel out of the Justice League, not unless he felt he absolutely must. The hero was still a powerful ally, one that he would gladly fight among if it meant keeping Earth safe. If the dark knight was being honest with himself, this was more of a test than anything, and it looked like Marvel passed with flying colors. So, with one last glance at Solomon, Batman gave his reply. 

"Looks like that wisdom of your is worth something after all." And with that, Batman turned around, ready to grapple away, but Marvel called out to him before he could.

"Wait! Does that mean I get to stay on the team?" the hero exclaimed, that childlike excitement coming back in full force. It nearly made the dark knight smile, but he managed to control it.

"Yes Captain Marvel, it means you're still apart of the Justice League. And no need to worry about me telling your secret," Batman turned his head, just enough to see the others face. "After all, we all have a life and an identity to preserve, and that includes you. But don't think I'll go easy on you because I know you're a kid."

Marvel shook his head rapidly, his bright smile as electric as his eyes. "No need to sir! Holey moley, I can't believe you didn't actually kick me off! Best day ever!" 

The vigilante's mouth twitched, but he looked away before Marvel could notice it. "See you later, kid." He raised his grapple once again, pulling the trigger and watching as the hook snagged itself into the side of a nearby building. With another click the line pulled him along, and from behind him he could hear Marvel calling out his own goodbyes. The dark knight didn't look back, but he knew if he did, the aura of Solomon would be grinning after him.

Looks like this god stuff would be more confusing than he thought it would be.                   


	2. The Strength of Hercules

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go! Hope you enjoy~

Clark Kent knew strength. In many ways he was the embodiment of it; plenty of people see Superman and all they can  _think_ of is strength, the giant S on his chest projecting to the world who he was and and what his purpose is. Many saw hope in that strength, just like the symbol on his chest stands for, but some see fear. They think he's too powerful, with no way to know if he could turn on Earth whenever he saw fit. If Clark were to be honest, he thought those people who held those fears against him were partially right, but at the same time it felt kind of ridiculous trying to explain himself to those people, especially since he's helped save to the world more times that he can count. 

Many other heroes had strength, both in power and in mind, when it came to their power. Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Captain Marvel, and many others all had varying degrees in strength, though Clark always assumed that his was the greatest. He could be beaten in others ways  _besides_ brute force, but when it came down pound by pound, he had them all beat. 

At least, like said before, that's what he  _assumed._

Now, though, he wasn't so sure. 

"These giants robots are starting to be a pain in my ass!" Superman yelled out, swiftly flying out of the way as one of it's huge metal arms swiped through the air. He caught the offending object when it slowed down, bracing himself against the body of the machine as he attempted to pull it off. Unlike the past three times he's tried this, the arm gave, ripping cleanly off as if it were made of aluminum. 

But the hero had no time to take this as a victory. As quickly as he had ripped the arm off, it was already growing back. It's done things like this in the time they've been fighting; every dent and scratch Superman made on the metal skin disappearing within seconds. At first he thought it was just some kind of advanced technology, but the more and more he fought it, the more he was convinced it was magic. 

He hated magic.

Growling under his breath, Superman began beating the robot with its own arm, hoping that since it was the same type of material it would do  _some_ damage. The robot stepped back, perhaps a little stunned it was being hit with its own limb, but otherwise didn't seem phased at the new development. Just like every other time, once it decided being beat up wasn't fun, it swung out its arm, the other one this time. Superman didn't notice until it was too late, and by the time he did notice the hunk of metal was already launching him to the side of a building. It reminded him of a time as a kid when his dad taught him how to play baseball, and he it the ball so hard it was sent into a neighbours farm a mile and a half away. He didn't play any more baseball after that.

Superman flinched as he slammed into the concrete building, thankful that his bones couldn't break under normal circumstances. Well, that is, if you could call this a 'normal circumstance.' It was quite normal for him at least, though, he was used to slamming his enemies into the building,  _not_ the other way around. 

The hero pushed himself away from the building that now had a Superman shaped dent in it, zooming back towards the robot that was now making its way downtown, where most of the apartment buildings and housing was. If he had any idea on how long this was going to take beforehand, the hero would have already taken the robot to a farm on the outskirts of Metropolis, away from all the civilians that could be caught in the crossfire. But now he knew he couldn't; a billboard was already starting to fall from where the robot ran into it, and dozens of people were running in panic at the sight of the metal being.

Within moments, Superman was under the falling billboard, using his strength to hold it up and give time for any civilians that were still under it to move. Once they were all cleared, he dropped it unceremoniously, quickly going back to the task at hand. The robot was getting further and further into the heart of Metropolis, where more and more people would be. He had to end this  _now._

With a grunt, the man of steel launched himself at the hunk of metal, digging his fingers into the body and forcing it to move up. He was hoping to get the thing off the ground and into the air, where he would have the advantage, but it seemed the robot was a  _lot_ heavier than it looked. It barely came off the ground, only the heels of its huge feet being lifted.

"Dammit," Superman whispered to himself, his muscles already straining from the weight of the robot. Who the hell could make something this heavy? In the back of his mind, he knew  _exactly_ who that was, but right now, he couldn't ponder it. Lives were still at stake.

With another hard push, Superman could feel the robot lift up more, just enough to get it off the ground completely, but he knew there was no way he could carry it all the way to the fields like he wanted to. He's never been this  _tired_ after lifting something like this, like the very metal itself was sapping his strength. This  _had_ to be some form of magic; nothing else could make him so weak and strained, except for Kryptonite of course, and he knew for a fact there was none in the robot. If there was, he would be feeling its effects like not being able to fly or even passing out. 

No. It must be magic.

"Where's help when you need it?" the hero grunted to himself, about ready to give up and shove the robot back into the ground. He could really use the help of his fellow League members, but as of the moment, he had no way to contact them on such a short notice. 

Just as he thought that, a cheerful voice exclaiming, "holy  _moly_ that's a giant robot!" became present in Superman's ears. It was from rather close by, and was rapidly getting closer, like the voice was flying through the air. In fact, he  _knew_ who that voice was, someone with an endless supply of enthusiasm and heart- 

And just like that, Captain Marvel was by his side, taking a similar position under the robot and pushing just like Superman was. But unlike with the man of steel, the red clad hero had no problem lifting the machine, leaving Superman with no doubt that this was magic. It was one of those many moments he wished he had some sort of resistance to the otherworldly force just like Captain Marvel did. He didn't wish for it often, seeing that he rarely went up against anything magical in the first place, but it would be nice to have. 

"Where to, Superman?" called out Marvel once they were above the city skyline. The robot was beginning to thrash in their, or, more accurately, Captain Marvel's, hold. Even with his strength, the robot could fall easily if it so desired to, all the way down to the city below.

"The fields outside of the city!" Superman yelled back, letting go of the robot and giving all of its weight to Marvel, using his now freed hands to point the direction they need to go. The other hero nodded in understanding, a look of pure concentration on his face as he flew the metal hunk where he was instructed to go. He was definitely that he normally would be, but now, all Superman was concerned about was it getting out of Metropolis. 

Soon enough, they made it to the fields, but by this time, the robot was full on thrashing in Captain Marvel's hands. Even with his strength of Hercules it was hard for the magical hero to keep a hold of the smooth metal of the robot, so before he could drop it down below, he decided to throw it the few hundred feet that was left to the grassy area, hoping that it would make some sort of dent of the metal. 

The machine hit the ground with a large  _BOOM!,_ creating a large smoking crater and a sound wave that people would be able to feel from miles away. For one minute, the silver bolder in the middle of the crater did not move, and in that time Superman came to fly next to Captain Marvel. They both observed the crater, and after a few seconds, Superman simply said, "I hate magic."

That caused Marvel to laugh, a hearty sound that made the man of steel's heart feel warm. Contrary to what most think about his and Captain Marvel's relationship, they actually got along quite well. It was nice to have the other hero around, his optimism and enthusiasm enough to make Superman feel great on the worst of days. It was also nice to have a hero that could go toe to toe with him, one that could understand the fear of accidentally going off on the world without anyone that could stop them. Superman supposed that's what they were to one another: a weapon that could take the other down if need be. 

"Guess that's why you need me here!" Marvel replied with a smile, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "I saw the news in Fawcett City and go here as fast as possible. Looks like I came just in time."

From below the two heroes, metal began to creak and groan from the robot, and it slowly started to rise. Superman narrowed his eyes. "And we're not done yet."

The robot was severely dented, so much so that any normal machine would have simply stopped working. But like said before, this was  _no_ ordinary machine. Within a few seconds of standing all the way up, the robot's metal skin began rebuilding itself, the dents and tears rapidly returning to its pristine, original state. When it looked back up, it was met with both Superman and Captain Marvel, the heroes looking like a pair of particularly pissed off parents that were disappointed.

"Come get some, tin can!" yelled Marvel, and at the same time the heroes charged at the robot, their fists hitting the metal in the body at the same time. It stumbled, but like nearly every other time, it wasn't sent flying. It only seemed to piss off the robot, its limbs swinging through the air as the two heroes flew around it. The speed of Mercury helped Captain Marvel so that he never got hit by the swinging arms, but Superman wasn't quite so lucky. The man of steel slowed down momentarily to hit the metal hunk with his heat vision, another power the machine simply glanced off. It was enough to get its attention, however, and with movements quicker than should be possible it hit the hero to the ground.

"Superman!" Marvel called out, dashing to the ground to help his friend, who was currently stunned from the force of smashing into the unforgiving earth. The robot raised his giant foot, and it took the red cladded hero less than a second to realize what it was about to do. 

Without a moment to lose, Captain Marvel raised his arms, and half a moment later the robot's foot was pressing down onto him, trying to step on him as if he were an ant. But the robot had greatly underestimated this ant, especially one with the powers of gods. 

For several seconds, all Superman could do was watch. The concentration on the other hero's face and the strain in his arms suddenly took his breath away, like he was seeing the other for the first time. He knew Marvel was strong like he was, knew he had the strength of Hercules, but something about this moment made every other time he's used that strength pale in comparison. Maybe it was the fact that the man of steel himself couldn't lift the robot, so to see Marvel not only lift it, but go against the force of the thing pushing down on him was stunning enough. Or perhaps it was the utter  _power_ that was currently radiating off the hero, something he didn't do very often.

Or, now that Superman was thinking about it, it was the glowing figure that was currently hovering around Captain Marvel. He didn't notice it at first, but one closer inspection, the image of a man could be seen, one with dark hair and tan skin, muscles bulging in his arms in back. It was almost like the figure was  _helping_ Marvel, and when he turned around to look at the man of steel, he gave a smirk, black eyes boring into him. 

Hercules. A man he assumed was a myth, right here in front of his very eyes.

_"You going to help him? Or am I going to have to stand here all day?"_

Superman blinked rapidly in surprise, but it was enough to snap him out of whatever had been holding him in place. He jumped up, and in a moment he was flying into the sky, using all of the strength and force he had to fly into the robot. It had the desired effect, the metal hunk getting enough off balance so that its weight was off its foot, and in that time Marvel managed to get free. 

"You alright down there?" Superman called out to his fellow hero, glad when Marvel gave him a smile and a thumbs up. 

"Then let's finish this."

As it turns out, Captain Marvel knew exactly what they needed to do to take down the robot once and for all (how, the man of steel wouldn't think to ask until much later). As Superman distracted the robot, the other hero managed to get behind the metal hunk, wrapping his arms around its neck. Before Superman could even question what his friend was doing, Marvel was shouting out, _"SHAZAM!"_

A flash of lightning appearing a heartbeat later, and if the man of steel wasn't to busy marveling at the crumbling robot, he would have wondered where in the world the lightning bolt came from in the first place, especially since it was a clear, sunny day without a cloud in sight. 

But alas, his full attention was on the robot, and how the second the magical lightning touched it its entire being shuttered violently, turning to ash quickly after words. Captain Marvel waved from his place in the air, and for the seconds time that day Superman couldn't help but smile. He swore he could still see Hercules around the other hero, chest swelled up in what the man of steel could only assumed to be pride.  _Look at what Captain Marvel did,_ he seemed to boast, dark eyes once again flickering to Superman's.  _It's almost like he's a god._

He was quickly taken out of those thoughts when Marvel said, "I'd love to stay, but I've got to go!"

Superman nodded in response, understanding that the other hero had a life to get back to. He saluted as Captain Marvel waved one last time, using his speed to blink in the direction of Fawcett City. The man of steel shook his head fondly, looking down at the pile of ash that used to be a robot. He couldn't stop thinking about that man, Hercules as he assumed, and how very  _real_ he seemed. He supposed it wasn't the weirdest thing he's ever seen, but it was still enough to make him do a double take.

"Oh well," he said to himself, ready to fly back to Metropolis to help with the damage that had been done while the robot had been there. 

He guessed he should add gods to the list of things he's seen in his life.             


	3. The Stamina of Atlas

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy holidays everyone! Hope you enjoy~

Victor Stone was used to going long periods of time without doing things that normal people do. Ever since the accident, ever since he was turned into  _Cyborg,_ he found that certain everyday functions he either didn't need as much or simply could function without. Things like eating, drinking, and using the bathroom weren't needed with his new, technologically advanced self. So, despite the occasional need to repair or fix something in his limbs, he could go days without ever stopping to rest once, even if the other members of the League always insisted he should rest. 

But he knew even he had his limits. Everyone did, Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter, and even the godlike Superman need to take a break every once and a while to make sure they can get back up and keep going. It was natural that everything had a breaking point, a point where no matter your willpower, no matter the purpose you held, that at some point, you had to stop. You will know when that point is, the problem, however, was listening out for that moment.

If you don't listen when the time comes, it could get you killed. Then everything you worked for would be for nothing at all.

That's why when the Riddler decided that today would be a good day to start destroying parts of Gotham City, Victor was glad that the previous day he charged up and repaired a dent in his left arm. If not, who knows what he would be doing right now, probably dead on the ground, or at least near it. Any villain of Batman's that he required  _help_ with was going to be fun to deal with, especially when that villain was quite fond of puns and well, riddles. 

Currently, Cyborg was with Wonder Woman and Green Arrow, the three of them charged with somehow disarming a bomb that Riddler was planning to set. They had already evacuated the surrounding area, a park that had been filled with civilians enjoying the nice day, but now the problem was actually figuring out what the bomb  _was._ You could hear the ticking, Cyborg's tech picked up the signature of the bomb, but for whatever reason they couldn't find it.

"Okay, this is  _actually_ kind of ridiculous," Green Arrow mumbled to himself, clenching his bow that was currently in his left hand. Cyborg nodded in agreement, typing another code into his search to help narrow down where the bomb would be. They knew it wasn't in the ground, that it wasn't in any veitation for that matter, but they had no idea where it could possibly be. For all they knew it wasn't even here and Riddler basically sent them here so that there would be less people fighting against him. 

It sounded like something the sick fuck would do.

Wonder Woman, who was looking off as if she were deep in thought, abruptly stated, "it's magic. No wonder it couldn't be found," and turned to face her two companions. Cyborg didn't know  _how_ she figured out it was magic, or why she knew  _now,_ but he learned not to question the princess when it came to things like this. It was better just to trust her word and move on than to gain a headache trying to understand the logistics behind it. Cyborg's mind was programmed much like a computers was, meaning part of his brain was constantly moving and working to solve problems, equations, and whatever was in front of him at the time. The only time he actively  _shut down_ that part of his brain was when Wonder Woman began talking magic and shit.

Get her and Captain Marvel in the same room? Pure Hell. Not that he  _disliked_ Captain Marvel or anything, he just hated how he couldn't keep up with what he was saying whenever the subjects of mythology and gods and magic came up, what was real and what wasn't, it made what few nerves he had on his body tingle.  _I know I can understand this,_ he'd think to himself.  _I just need to listen more carefully._

It never worked.

Anyway, Cyborg tapped a button on his robotic arm, causing the bomb reading device to disappear back into the many groves and compartments of his body. "Well, if it's magic, can you find it?" he asked, watching as the look on Wonder Woman's face became unreadable once again. After another minute, (in which Green Arrow waved his hand in front of Wonder Woman's face and gave her a silly look, making Cyborg simply roll his eyes) the princess came back to, her dark blue eyes set and firm.

"This way," was all she commanded, and that's all it took for the other two men to follow her. About 30 yards in front of them was a small pavilion with picnic tables under it, a beautiful place to be if you wanted to spend time with your family on a nice day. It was clear that people had been there recently, with a napkin fluttering in the breeze and a few water bottles left behind. It must have come from those who were evacuated earlier. 

Cyborg narrowed his eye in confusion, wondering why Wonder Woman brought them back here. They had already checked this area out with no results of the bomb being anywhere near here. The beeping had even gotten quieter as they made there way over, and everything in Cyborg's head was telling him there was no way the bomb was here.

But like he said before, this was Wonder Woman they were talking about. She must have a reason for bringing them back here, right? "Is there something we missed from before?" was all Cyborg asked, feeling more and more anxious when the princess didn't respond. They didn't have time to ponder the ifs and buts right now; they needed to find that bomb (if there even  _is_ a bomb) and deactivate it. It they couldn't in time, they had to get out of there as soon as possible. It was simple in his mind, but apparently the world didn't think so. 

"There is a magical spell here," Wonder Woman finally said, her hand moving through the air as if she were imagining a painting was running through it. "It's not activated, though. It's like it's waiting for a certain trigger to go off before it does."

"What the Hell could that be?" Green Arrow questioned, raising a blond eyebrow at his two companions. "Cause  _believe_ me, as much as I would love to get rid of it, how would we be able to if it could be triggered randomly at any time? It's like walking on eggshells that you can't even see, and if you  _do_ step on on, the whole thing explodes in your face."

Wonder Woman chuckled, but there was no humor behind the action. "I honestly have no idea, Green Arrow. Unfortunately, I am not very skilled when it comes to magic. That would be a job for Zatanna or Dr. Fate."

Just as Cyborg was about to say that maybe they should call on the others and get either Zatanna or Dr. Fate here, a notification appeared in his left eye. With a glance and a few simple commands, he found the notification was from Captain Marvel, one of the only League members that had not come to Gotham. In fact, Marvel wasn't even  _there_ when the League first assembled an hour ago. Even though _Victor_ knew that the heroes on the League had another life,  _including_ Captain Marvel,  _Cyborg_ couldn't help but feel a little bit annoyed. It felt like Marvel was always the last one to show up, even when the world was being invaded and they pretty much had  _minutes_ before everything went to shit.

Cyborg read the message to himself, saying out loud, "Captain Marvel will be joining us shortly. Maybe he'll be able to understand the magic you sense here, Wonder Woman?"

The princess nodded, tilting her head in a way Cyborg much associated with a dog. "I think he will, and in fact, I hear him coming right now."

The three heroes looked up, and wouldn't you know it, there was Marvel, hovering about two hundred feet in the air, waving his arms frantically. Green Arrow waved back, covering his eyes as he did so to keep the sun out of them. After a few moments, Cyborg started to wonder why the Captain wasn't coming down to join them, but simply staying up there, waving to them. Green Arrow echoed his thoughts a second later. 

"Why is he staying up there?" he pondered, squinting his eyes as he tried to get a better look at the other hero. "Hey Captain! We could really use you help down here!"

Captain Marvel shook his head rapidly at Green Arrow's words, calling back something that none of them could hear over the wind. Cyborg increased his hearing settings, hoping to catch a glimpse of what Marvel was saying, but before he could, there was a loud,  _BOOM_ shook the earth to its core and made the ground feel like liquid under him. Cyborg only had a moment to yell out before something his him sharply in the head and everything went dark.

 

 

When Cyborg woke up, everything was pitch black. For a minute, he couldn't feel anything and his brain was simply mush, trying to comprehend the world around him. After his systems finally booted up, some of that mushiness faded away, and he managed to turn on a light that was in his right arm. A simple look around him revealed that he was more than likely underground in some sort of cave or cavern, and that Green Arrow and Wonder Woman were out cold. Cyborg cursed under his breath, snapping his head when he heard a sound that wasn't there before come from his left. It almost sounded like a sigh of relief, but it came out as more of a grunt, like the being it was coming from was under a lot of stress.

A simple look at who it was and what they were doing showed that this person, or more accurately, Captain Marvel,  _was_ under a lot of stress. It took a moment for Cyborg's brain to understand just exactly the other hero was doing, but further on further inspection he came to the startling conclusion that Marvel was holding up the  _ceiling._

As in the ceiling that was currently made of  _rock_ and  _granite,_  with absolutely no way to know how much was above them. 

For a minute, Cyborg simply sat there, stunned and amazed as he watched his fellow League member hold up the slab of earth, his face filled to the brim with as much concentration as he could. Just how long has he been  _holding_ that one position, wondering if his teammates were dead with no way to contact the others? Cyborg didn't know, wasn't sure if he  _wanted_ to know. He knew Marvel had the strength and stamina of gods, but this felt like something else entirely. 

Just as he was about to see if he could get Green Arrow and Wonder Woman to wake up, something caught Cyborg's eye, something that he was positive wasn't there moments earlier. Around Captain Marvel was a man, his entire being transparent. His skin was tinged blue, his shoulders and hands seemingly made of rock or stone with cracks in them. He was also...  _helping_ Captain Marvel? That was the only way to describe it, the way the man seemed to surround the other hero and support him while he held the earth.

The man's pure white eyes glanced up at Cyborg, a simple eyebrow raising at him. Cyborg had the feeling he could to that all day, do that for all  _eternity,_  but he wasn't worried about himself. No, he was worried about the one he was helping.

Without another moment to lose, Cyborg ran to his teammate to check to see if they were okay. Both were breathing fine, but they were still out cold, and he didn't want to waste any time trying to wake them up. Quickly, he checked to see if his comms were still intact. Amazingly, they were, somehow surviving after the long fall and crash he must have had on the way down. Captain Marvel let out another grown, and even at a distance with limited light Cyborg could see the beads of sweat roll down his face. He may have the stamina of Atlas but-

Wait. Stamina of Atlas. As in, the Titan from Greek mythology, the one that held the sky.

Cyborg blinked, the blue man coming back into focus. _Yes, I know,_ his eyes seemed to say.  _Now, can you **please** help? _

The hero, using his comms, called up the first person he thought of, which happened to be Batman. All it took was on ring before the dark knight was on the other line, his gruff voice slightly staticy.  _"Cyborg, is that you?"_ he demanded, and if the cybernetic hero tried hard enough, he swore he heard worry in the others voice. But Batman never showed his feelings outright like that.

"Yeah, it's me," Cyborg replied. "I'm in some sort of underground cave with Wonder Woman, Green Arrow, and Captain Marvel. We were trying to defuse the bomb when in went off, and it knocked everyone except for Marvel out. Currently Wonder Woman and Green Arrow are still out, and the ceiling is being held up by Marvel."

_"Damn,"_ was all Batman said at first, a wave of static cutting through the connection before clearing again.  _"We know where you are now. Martian Manhunter found your mind telepathically just a few moments ago. Hang tight and hope that Marvel can keep the earth up."_

"Understood. Has Riddler been found?"

There was definitely a tinge of satisfaction in Batman's voice when he said,  _"let's just say the bastard will be in Arkham for a **long** time."_

Cyborg smiled a little at that. "Good to know. See you in a few." And the connection broke, once again leaving the hero by himself. By now both of his fellow teammates were starting to come to, and he helped them out, telling them that the other League members were on their way and that Riddler had been caught.

"So much for needing our help," Green Arrow grumbled as he rubbed at the headache that was trying to form behind his eyes. "They could have just left us at the Watchtower and let us prance around in our underwear."

"Do not think so little of yourself, Green Arrow," Wonder Woman reassured him, adjusting the shield and sword strapped to her back. Her focus was not on the archer however, but Captain Marvel, who was still trembling under the weight of the rock. No longer could Cyborg see Atlas, or whomever that was, but he could still feel the energy radiating off Marvel in waves, like he was his own nuclear reactor or something. It was honestly fascinating, but still terrifying to wonder when he would give, even with the power he held.

"Jesus, has he been doing that this entire time?" questioned Green Arrow, astonished. Cyborg nodded, and behind the archers green eye mask he saw amazement. He couldn't blame him. 

"He is a strong warrior. I have no doubt that as long as we are here, the earth will continue to hold," the princess said, as if she could hear the echo of Cyborg's thoughts. "Did Batman say when they would get here?"

"He was not every specific, but you know how he is. Knowing him, it could either take one minute or an hour-" 

Cyborg was abruptly cut off by the sound of a drill being cut through rock, dirt beginning to crumble from the ceiling. The heroes, trapped with nowhere to escape from the falling rock, simply grind their teeth and hoped it would pass. Even as the drill sounded louder and louder and more and more dirt began to fill the cave, Captain Marvel never once faltered, saying stubbornly in his place holding the rock up. It was as if he didn't notice anything in the world around him at all.

Finally after what felt like hours and the drill threatening to blow out Cyborg's eardrum, a hole opened up right above them, revealing Green Lantern. Coming from his ring was the drill they've been hearing for so long, and if Cyborg squinted enough he could also see the sky behind Lantern, which was much darker than he previously remembered it being.

"You guys ready to get out of there?" Lantern asked, a stupid smirk on his face. Cyborg was aching to get out, as he knew his teammates were, but first they needed to get Captain Marvel out. He told Green Lantern this, and with his ring he quickly created a giant shovel than got rid of the last of the earth, leaving no more weight for the Captain to bear. When the hero seemed to realize this, his focused expression became dazed, and Cyborg realized that by the way he was swaying that he would hit the ground from exhaustion. Green Lantern seemed to come to this conclusion as well, and both heroes rushed to grab Marvel before he could fall.

"Geez dude," Lantern wheezed as he supported the red cladded hero by putting an arm around his waist. "You're heavier than you look. How long did you even hold all of that shit up?"

"Three hours," Marvel weakly whispered back, and Cyborg couldn't help but think back to the figure he saw. Captain Marvel truly did have the stamina of a god, and that god thought that he was worthy enough to help him keep his teammates safe. It was almost heartwarming, in a way.

"Well, either way, we all owe you big time," Cyborg said as he helped Lantern get Captain Marvel out of the giant hole they've all been in for over three hours, Wonder Woman flying with Green Arrow behind them. But as they began to see the rest of the League, all waiting anxiously for them to come out safe, Marvel simply smiled his signature innocent grin.

"Just doing my job, my friend."                     


	4. The Power of Zeus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all enjoy~

Diana of Themyscira knew what power was, in a sense. She knew for some people, their power was used differently, or that power was a completely different goal. Like the politician's using their power over the government to do certain things, good or bad, that affect the people they are supposed to work for. Or the crime bosses in a city's underground, how their power and fist around their city strangles everyone who comes in contact with it with fear. Or even the heroes like herself, the ones who decide to use their power for good and help those who can't help themselves. 

To some, those who have power are simply good or bad. Very few see the grey area, the place where people can switch on a dime for whether they use their power for good or evil. Those people are more dangerous than any hero or villain could ever be, a wild card that gets thrown into the air much more often than any other with no way of telling what it will be when it comes down. 

Now, Diana liked to think she was rather good at reading people, and for the most part, she was. Her instincts about certain people have saved others and added new teammates to the Justice League. She knew every single one of them by name and always made an effort to get to know every single Justice League member, no matter how powerful or how weak. It was important to establish some sort of a relationship with them, to get to know where their boundaries are and just to simply understand.

But there was one person in the Justice League that she still couldn't seem to find the code for, one person she still didn't completely understand. That person was Captain Marvel, and even thinking about it gave Diana the start of a headache.

Captain Marvel seems simple enough on the surface. He's  _very_ friendly, almost scarily so, with a hint of innocence and immaturity mixed in there with him. It was like the man never got to properly grow  _up,_ and now he was stuck in a body that didn't reflect his experience. Yet the wisdom he possessed showed maturity beyond  _anyone's_ years. Many times Diana couldn't believe the same Captain Marvel that ran around with a tiger like it was the best game ever was the same Captain Marvel that could reason with the most dangerous of villains, but he was. Somehow, he was.

There was also the thing with how secretive is. For as open as he was, for as much of his heart he wore on his sleeve, he was the only League member who has not shared his identity with  _anyone._ It didn't matter if you just wanted to get a drink with him, wanted to just hang out with him, he always made an excuse to get out of it. Granted, he was a horrible liar and it was usually filled with a bunch of stuttering, but he still managed to speed away every single time before he could be convinced otherwise. 

Once when she asked Batman about it, because surely Bruce knew who Captain Marvel was, he dodged the question. "Everyone has a right to a secret identity, Diana," was all he said before rushing off to do something else. And while yes, she understood that, at the same time it was odd to think about how he knew who everyone else was without any of them knowing who he was.

Then there was that whole thing about being an avatar for the gods. For the first few months that she knew Marvel, she didn't really believe him when he said all of his powers come from old gods, including her own father, Zeus. As far as the Amazon's knew, none of the old gods have made any contact with any human in centuries, so why would they suddenly do it for a mortal? There had to be something she was missing, though, if she were being honest, she was kind of jealous that Captain Marvel was able to meet his father before she was. Don't get Diana wrong, she understands that all powerful gods don't exactly have time planned out with their children, but at the same time it was weird that her own father decided Marvel was worthy enough to meet, but not her.

But in all that time of knowing Marvel, and all of the times he showed just how powerful he could be (going toe to toe would Superman  _definitely_ gained you some respect, no matter who you were) she's never seen him... go  _off_ per say. He's been concentrated, thoughtful, stressed and even angry, but never had any of that ever lead to damage being done. He's always managed to control himself, a trait which Diana admired him for, especially the first time she really  _saw_ it, which was when Superman went off on him about a mission that went completely sideways. Marvel hadn't shown up at the designated time, and when he  _did_ show up, he seemed to make everything worse. Yet even then, with his teammate screaming in his face, he remained calm and collected, taking every insult and jab without ever showing he was hurt by them. Afterwords, he simply said, "I'm sorry I couldn't be more help," and moved on like nothing ever happened.

But now... now she wasn't so sure how well he could control himself.

It was Black Adam they were fighting right now, a villain which Diana had never fought before now. She remembered Marvel's warning beforehand about just how powerful his enemy was, his magic even enough to take Superman totally out of the fight if they weren't careful. But of course, being careful usually went out of the window when you talked about the Justice League fighting a villain, especially one that was set on destroying a city.

They went in too confident, she realized now. They underestimated their target, thinking that since there was so many of them against one person that they would win easily. They hadn't counted on Black Adam somehow replicating himself, an ability that Captain Marvel was sure he didn't have before. Whatever Adam had done to be able to do that, it was powerful enough to take down the majority of the League sent to stop him, including Superman, Green Lantern, Hawkwoman, and Diana herself.

Wonder Woman fought to get back up from her place on the ground, every muscle screaming in agony. Despite her resistance to magic, the lightning bolt Black Adam had sent her way still drained her of any strength. Marvel wasn't kidding when he said his nemesis was powerful, and as she turned her head to see Superman in a crater a few feet away from her, completely knocked out, she understood. 

Another flash of lightning caught her attention, and she looked up to see Black Adam and Captain Marvel in the middle of an intense battle, magic pouring from both of them as they tried to outplay the other. Marvel's fists were oozing electricity, his entire form slightly fuzzy as if he were fading in and out of reality. Adam was the same way, both of them moving so fast that Wonder Woman had trouble keeping up. Fists were thrown and charges in the air were made by the two, all the while the Justice League members were attempting to get up from where Adam threw them to the ground. 

The Flash, who was to the right of Wonder Woman, was the first to actually stand  _up,_ but just as quickly he was back on the ground, a miniature lightning bolt coming to strike him. The Flash yelped, and the princess of Themyscira struggled to comprehend just how Adam was able to do that mid fight. The villain couldn't have seen him for more than a second before he called the bolt, something that impressed Wonder Woman way more than she would like to admit.  

It got the attention of Marvel, who before had a look of pure concentration on his face. He slowed down very little, but it was just enough for Adam to get the upper hand on him, punching everything from Marvel's jaw to his abbs, and even kneeing him in the stomach. With a mighty blow, Adam fist hit Marvel straight in the chest, sending him flying to the ground below. It was the same move he had used on Superman minutes before, the one that took the man of steel right out of the fight.

Wonder Woman let out a noise of despair, wanting to run over to her teammate and help him, but her body still didn't want to work. She watched on horror as Marvel it the ground, the impact sending a shockwave through the earth. From above, Black Adam smiled sinisterly, crossing his arms and slowly floating down to where his nemesis landed. He stopped a few feet from the ground, hovering menacingly and gradually turning in a full circle to look around himself.

"Every single one of you  _heroes_ are  _weak,"_ Adam hissed, his voice carrying over the ruined city block. He looked back to Captain Marvel, who just pushed himself up to his knees and shakily stood up, breath labored. How he was able to when everyone else couldn't, Wonder Woman didn't even want to try to think about. The simplest explanation was that being a being of magic himself, the hero would have some sort of immunity to it, but that still didn't explain how Zatanna was taken out so easily. It must be something more.

"And  _you,"_ Adam growled to his nemesis, glaring down at him. "I still have no idea why the Wizard chose a  _child_ to replace me, but believe me when I say it will be the last mistake he ever makes." With that Adam let a lightning bolt grow in his hands, and with a flick of his wrist it hit Marvel, making the hero fly backwards and hit a building, the glass from the windows shattering around him. Black Adam was on him in an instant, raining down lightning fisted punches onto the defenseless Captain. 

"You're  _weak!"_ Adam yelled, a particularly hard punch going straight into Marvel's jaw.  _"Powerless!_ Where are your gods now, when you need them the most?" He lifted Marvel into the air by his collar, his face covered in deep bruises. It occurred to Wonder Woman that she's never actually seen Marvel with an  _injury_ before, let alone the blood that was currently running down the side of his face. 

The next words that came from Adam's mouth were spoken so quietly that Wonder Woman nearly missed them entirely. "No _wonder_ your parents died and no one wanted you."

The shift in the atmosphere was near immediate, the smell of ozone and rain filling Wonder Woman's nostrils as she watched the expression on Marvel's face turned from pain to pure rage. His blue eyes filled with lightning, electricity crackling around him like fireworks as a yell of anger came from his throat. Even from where she was the princess could see the surprise on Adam's face, and in a heartbeat it was the  _villain_ being pummeled by magic, each hit sounding like a miniature bomb going off. More and more of Marvel's body became infused with the lightning, and with each passing second his hits grew harder and harder until Wonder Woman cringed at each one. 

She finally managed to make it to her feet, fully intending to help her fellow teammate finish the job they came here to do, when suddenly, she froze. At first she thought it was some sort of magic tricking her brain, showing her something that couldn't be there, but it was. It had to be.

Wonder Woman blinked furiously, wondering if that would get rid of the image she was seeing, but it only seemed to grow stronger. 

There was someone above Captain Marvel, a man with dark hair and beard, eyes filled with lightning much like Marvel's were, the light a startling blue rather than white. His skin was tanned from much time in the sun, and without even trying Wonder Woman could feel the power radiating off of him in intense waves. 

There was only one person it  _could_ be.

Zeus. King of the Gods. Her own father, right there in front of her, seemingly  _helping_ Captain Marvel by lending him his strength. How was that even possible? None of the gods have formed on the Earth since the fall of Greece, Egypt and Rome, when most of the population stopped worshipping them. And yet, Zeus was here now, everything about him as bright and as angry as the hero he was with. 

_"How dare you talk about them!"_ screamed Marvel, his arms now turning into pure lightning. He grabbed Black Adam around the neck, lifting him up into the air, much like Adam had done to him not a few minutes before.  _"How dare you bring them into this!"_

With a swift flex of muscle, Marvel sent the flying across the pavement, leaving a dented path in his wake. Within a heartbeat the hero followed, his speed kicking up dust made by the rubble around him. "You come  _here,_ to _my_ city,  _destroy_ buildings,  _terrorize_ innocent civilians,  _hurt_ those I call friends, and now you bring  __up _them?!"_ He lifted Adam again, who now had blood splattered all over his face, Marvel glaring at him with such hatred that Wonder Woman could feel it  _burn._ It was so unlike the Captain Marvel she's known for over a year now, the uncontrolled power, the rage that consumed him. And Zeus almost seemed to be  _edging_ him on, _guiding_ him even. 

 "I'll make sure you never hurt anything I love ever again," Marvel said, much quieter than before. There was a sense of finality in his voice, a sober tone that nearly sounded like regret, like he never thought he would have to do whatever he was about to. He raised Black Adam above his head, and tilted his eyes up. 

Wonder Woman knew exactly what he was about to do the millisecond before he did it, but by then, it was far too late.

**_"SHAZAM!"_ ** __

Marvel's voice boomed across the city, across the world even. It was so strong, so  _powerful_ that Wonder Woman was sure everyone living heard it, even those who were deaf. The snap of thunder that came after did not even begin to compare, but the strike of lightning that followed, three times the width of Marvel himself, did. There was scream, but it was so faint that no one even knew it was there, no one except the one in the middle of all that lightning. 

When the smoke cleared, Black Adam was no more. There was only Captain Marvel where he had been seconds before, ashes in his hands that quickly fluttered off into the wind. The hero was no longer made of lightning, and the anger he possessed moments earlier was gone, replaced with a heartbroken look etched deeply onto his face. Zeus was still there right behind him, placing a hand on his shoulder as if he were comforting Marvel. But that was all he did before disappearing as quickly as he had come, once again leaving Captain Marvel by himself.

Wonder Woman finally snapped out of her shock at the events that had just taken place, running to her teammate, who was in the darkened crater he created. When she stopped in front of him, he slowly looked up to meet her eyes, and the princess was stunned when she found tears there, glistening for a villain that's caused him nothing but pain.

"Why are you okay, Captain Marvel?" Wonder Woman asked gently, placing a hand on his shoulder much like her father had. Marvel simply gave her a small, sad smile.

"I know it's stupid," he started. "But I've never had to...  _kill_ anyone before. But I knew that Black Adam would never stop no matter what I did, no matter the prison I put him in, no matter where in the universe I banished him to, he would always come back to hurt me and those around me. I... I had to stop him somehow. I'm sorry it had to be now, in front of all of you guys," he gestured to the Justice League members around him, many which were just now waking up from unconsciousness. 

"Look Marvel, I know what you did, many of us would consider it bad or immoral," Wonder Woman said. "But I want you to know, that even though you killed someone today, that I will stand by you, and I will support you in any way you need." There was so much more she wanted to say, so much more she wanted to ask, about her father, the origin of his power, what happened to his family, but right now he didn't need that. Right now, he needed to know that there was someone who would simply be there for him.

"Thank you, Wonder Woman," Marvel exclaimed, even as the tears continued to roll down his cheeks. "If I'm honest, I'm just glad it's over."

The princess nodded, taking a glance around her momentarily. Her teammates needed help, as did Fawcett City and it's civilian's, but she had one more thing to say to Captain Marvel.

"I am as well, and please," she smiled warmly, wondering if her father could see her through Marvel's eyes. 

"Call me Diana."                         


	5. The Courage of Achilles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy~

Hal Jordan was and expert when it came to willpower (that's what he'll tell you anyway, being a Green Lantern and all), but there were things he didn't 100 percent  _understand_ about it. Sure, he understood what is  _was,_ and what you could  _do_ with it, but there was never a really clear idea of where it  _came_ from. Many people like to say it comes from your heart, that is was a emotion deeply rooted in what you believe and love. In this theory, the more a Green Lantern understands their emotions, the stronger they are.

Hal could see where this idea came from, but he wasn't sure it was a clear cut as that. For example, there's been many of times where shear desperation was able to get him out of situations, his willpower coming  _from_ that desperation, not his heart. Or what about the times where he's become so angry that his willpower simply became a  _product_ of that anger and the will to carry it out? Or even when  _fear_ rarely came into the equation, and his willpower was focused on getting him out of whatever situation that was?

So yeah, Hal was sure that his heart wasn't always making his decisions for him (which was good, because he's probably be dead 10 times over if he did). He could debate this topic with anyone who wanted to talk about it (and even those who don't) and surprisingly enough, it's usually Batman of all people who will come to ask him about it. Granted, it's probably because the bastard just wants to know everything he can about everyone and everything, but it's still nice to have someone who will listen to his own crazy theories and actually take them seriously. 

And yet, when it came to courage... Hal was more in the grey area on that one. Many people will shove willpower and courage into the same category, and while yes, in a sense they are rather similar to one another, they are still two very different ideas and topics. For willpower, it's more about  _control._ To be able to control your emotions and impulses instead of acting on them, thinking rationally in the face of the chaos around you. It's why Green Lantern's are so good in the face of fear, the ability to calm it and ignore it making them a great counter.

_Courage_ on the other hand, was a little different. It mostly dealt with fear, while willpower could deal with pretty much anything. Courage was more about  _embracing_ your fear, and being able to look past it in order to do something. Hal, as much as he hated to admit it, wasn't the best at embracing his fear and still being able to do whatever he had to do. He'd rather control it and put it out, like throwing water onto a fire. He hated having to deal with the heat, and it seemed no matter what he did he couldn't grow used to it.

Perhaps that's why now he was withering on the floor, ready to ball his eyes out.

I know, sounds a little dramatic, but you would be too if you were there. Getting a telepathic device planted on your head by an evil, bald headed villain and said villain making your worst nightmares come to reality was  _not_ Green Lantern's idea of a good Friday night, but here he was. His fellow League members had similar devices attached to them, and in the brief moments Green Lantern wasn't in the middle of a horrible nightmare he could see them all in various states of pain and agony. He wanted to get up and help them, he  _really_ did, but it was like his body forgot that it could work, and within seconds he was plunged back into the visions of his head.

His dad kept dying. Over and over and  _over_ again, the plane exploding time after time, the whole cycle set in a loop. Each time Hal begged with all of his might for his dad not to leave, for him to stay, but all his dad would do was smile, ruffle his hair, and head over to what would soon be his tomb. His mind and heart kept screaming at him, his heart saying that everything around him as real, while his mind was desperately trying to convince him it wasn't. Those few times when his mind won over his heart is when Green Lantern would be thrusted back into the real world, but the device quickly changed that every time.

He couldn't control it, his emotion, his fear of seeing his dad die over and over again. Without being able to control his pain, without being able to help his teammates, Green Lantern was worse than useless. It seemed no matter how hard he tried to find a connection to his ring, it was blocked, the fear making it even harder to find. 

"If I'd known it's be this easy to take down the Justice League, I would have done this a _lot_ sooner," a voice said, making its way through the haziness of Green Lantern's mind. He instantly recognized it as Lex Luthor, the prickiest bastard that he's ever had the pleasure of meeting. He didn't know  _how_ Superman dealt with him most days, and of all villains, both human and not, Green Lantern hated dealing with Luthor the most. This was mainly because of how damn  _smart_ the dude was, and combined with the seemingly endless stream of money, there was almost no limit to what he could create. And now he stood there, mocking them all as if it was all one giant joke. What was he still  _doing_ there anyway, especially since it was clear that they were all incapacitated? 

Maybe it was all some part of a bigger plan, but with his mind still out of whack, Green Lantern couldn't think of  _why_ Luthor would want them here in the first place. After all, the League had come here thinking that a different villain was here,  _not_ Luthor. He lured them here for a reason, a reason that the hero couldn't put together no matter how hard he tried.

Then suddenly, without any warning or reason, the vision stopped. Green Lantern gasped as his mind became his own once again, the pain abruptly disappearing like it was never there in the first place. Blinking rapidly, Green Lantern swiftly glanced around him, standing up to see that the others around him were still out of it. Looking in front of him, the hero saw Luthor himself, the villain pushing himself up onto his feet. He must have been knocked down by something, but whatever that was, he didn't know. The armor Luthor was wearing seemed slightly damaged, and it made Lantern wonder if that was the reason the device in his head decided to stop working.

"Green Lantern!" someone called out to him, and a quick glance to his right showed him that it was Captain Marvel, the other hero shaking and trembling as if just by standing all of his strength was being used. Lantern could see Luthor's device attached to the side of Marvel's face, the little object glowing green. The red cladded hero's eyes were clouded with pain and fear, much like everyone else's were, yet he still stood. 

_How could that be?_ Lantern wondered, still trying to recover his rapidly beating heart. But he wasn't given time to think or ask Marvel, because like a light switch being turned on, the vision of his father dying came right back to his head. Lantern screamed and grabbed at his head, closing his eyes to try and block out the sight, but it followed him behind his lids. 

"No, come on, you can get through this," Marvel's voice edged him on, so faint and distant that it was a miracle Lantern even heard him at all. Lantern shook his head, letting out a weak cry as once again, the plane his dad was in exploded, leaving him alone and without a father to help him through the ups and downs of life.

He thought he heard Marvel say something else, but whatever that was was drowned out in the explosion. However, he did hear Luthor say, "how are you still  _standing?!"_ followed by a beeping noise and the yell of the Captain. All Lantern could guess what Luthor did to Marvel was make the device in his head stronger, and it seemed to do the trick, though not for long. After only a few moments did Lantern see the blurry outline of his teammate stand up  _again,_ even as he himself fell to the ground.

Before Lantern was plunged back into the vision, he heard Luthor growl, and whatever came next was lost on Lantern. The vision had changed, now showing Carol, dying over and over again, each in different and horrible ways. Falling off a building, a gun shooting her in the head, and knife slitting her throat, everything his wild imagination could think of.  _He_ was even the cause of her death at times,  _his_ hands wrapping around her throat,  _his_ push shoving her into a fire,  _his_ poison making her choke. It was even more horrible than his dad, more horrible than anything else ever could be, to watch the woman he loved being killed over and over again and not being able to do anything about it. He was sure he was screaming now, burning tears rolling down his face.

_It's not real!_ something in his mind told him, whether someone said it or he thought it he didn't know.  _You have to get up, it's not real!_

"It  _feels_ real!" Green Lantern yelled back, not sure if anyone would would hear or even care. These visions felt so much stronger and more prominent than the one with his dad, but even still sometimes he would hear things that came from the outside world. A sizzle of electricity, a yell of defiance, mechanical screeching, a faded explosion that Lantern thought he might be able to feel but wasn't sure if he could. 

At one point, even the visions faded started to fade out, and in those few moments Lantern saw Marvel  _fighting_ Lex Luthor, the device still on his head. Either Luthor's invention wasn't working as well as it previously had been, or somehow Marvel was fighting through the visions he saw while no one else could. Both seemed impossible; there was no way Luthor would purposely or accidentally make something weak, but at the same time it seemed far fetched that Marvel was able to somehow  _fight_ the device, and not  _just_ fight it, but stand up and take on Luthor.

This was all Lantern could process before the visions took over again, and even of they did feel weaker than before, it still messed with his head. But he noticed his reactions weren't as strong, the pain and fear not consuming him as much, and each time Carol died seemed further and further away. 

Marvel was doing something to weaken them, he was sure. Perhaps he had found a weak spot in Luthor's technology, and he was exploiting it as much as he could. It was even weakened enough that he could stand up slowly, the visions no longer rendering his body useless like they had previously. They went in and out, but each time they tried to get stronger there was resistance. 

Now Lantern was able to consistently see the fight Captain Marvel and Lex Luthor were having, and by the looks of it Marvel was just now getting the upper hand, a look of pure determination on his face as he sent small bolts of lightning towards the villain. With each that were able to hit, the more and more of Luthor's suit started sparking. The villain retaliated with blasts from cannons in his suit, though even Lantern could tell the blasts were getting weaker and weaker.

With Lantern now being able to think slightly more clearly, he tried to answer the question he's had since the beginning: how was Captain Marvel able to fight Luthor's device? There had to be some reason he wasn't remembering-

Lantern squinted at the red cladded hero, wondering if the thing he was seeing was just apart of another vision. Currently, part of his sight was seeing Carol drowning in a tank with no way to get out, so it didn't really make sense why there would be another person would be there, especially since none of the other visions ever had others besides him and Carol in them. 

No, this dude was simply right next to Captain Marvel, observing the battle with a grim look on his face. With his tan skin, light green eyes, blond hair and bulging muscles, he looked like he came straight from a magazine, or even from one of those sculptures those Greek's always liked to make-

Wait. Holy shit, was that-

Green Lantern suddenly went through all the information he knew about Captain Marvel, one of them being that his powers came from a bunch of gods. If he really  _wasn't_ hallucinating, then he was next to positive that this was one of them, seemingly giving some sort of encouragement to Marvel when he started slowing down or got hit by one of Luthor's guns. The red cladded hero was sweating from exhaustion, every muscle strained, but he kept going, spurred on by that god right next to him.

Which one was it, Lantern wondered. Which god would be able to help him push through his fears and pain? Not Solomon, since he was for wisdom, not Mercury, Zeus, Hercules, Atlas, but there was one more he was forgetting. 

"Come on, what's the last one?" Lantern said to himself, his mind straining from the effort he was putting in to figuring out who the figure he was seeing was. And just as Marvel threw a particularly large bolt, hitting Luthor and making his suit explode and knocking the villain to the floor, his mind cleared and it came to him. 

"Achilles!" he suddenly screamed out, his mind clearing and the visions disappearing completely. He barely noticed the device fall from the side of his head, or the bewildered look the Captain gave him at his outburst. Lantern was just happy that he was able to think clearly now, and the visions of his loved ones dying were gone from his mind. Even Achilles looked kinda happy, his stone cold expression turning just a tad bit softer, his eyes tinged with what Lantern assumed to be satisfaction. Maybe it was for Marvel being able to finish off Luthor?

Whatever it was, apparently it wasn't enough for the guy to stay around long. The next time Lantern blinked he was gone, leaving him to wonder if it really all was just some vivid hallucination.

"Is everyone alright?" Marvel asked his fellow League members as they stood up, which just consisted of Green Lantern, Black Canary and Batman. Like he said before, when they came here they all assumed that it would be a quick and easy villain, not Luthor, so they sent very few to go. 

The others nodded, Canary wiping off tears that had fallen while she was under the influence of the device and Lantern quickly did the same. Even though he knew he had no control over his emotions with the device attached to him, he still felt kind of embarrassed for crying, something he wished he could get rid of. It was really just that he hated crying in general, but in front of his teammates was a whole different ball game, even if they could probably care less.

"Is it destroyed?" Batman questioned, his voice slightly tighter than normal. Marvel nodded in response, guestering to Luthor who was groaning on the floor from where Marvel hit him with lightning. 

"So much for a quick and easy run, right?" Lantern jokes, trying to lighten the mood a little bit. That was hard to do when they literally all saw their worst nightmares come to life, but no one ever said Green Lantern wasn't determined. Captain Marvel had more of a haunted look on his face than any of them, and once again Lantern wondered what he saw, and how much courage it took to ignore it and take down Luthor.

Maybe one day he would ask Captain Marvel, but for now, he was just glad for this day to be over. So once they got Luthor somewhere secure where he couldn't hurt anyone, Green Lantern made his way back to Coast City to see his wife for some much needed downtime.

And if he seemed happier than normal to see Carol, she never commented on it.                        


	6. The Speed of Mercury

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all enjoy~

Most days, Barry Allen had no idea what to think of the speed force. You'd think after all these years of being The Flash, after all these years of going into and out of the speed force at will, that he would know more that he did, but he didn't. The speed force is something that changes all the time, time, space, and positioning of those who could enter it shaping how it worked, even if they knew it or not. It doesn't necessarily matter what  _you_ want, in fact, most of the time it was what the  _speed force_ wants. And that made it hard to predict and study, something that drove a scientist like Barry Allen crazy. He wanted to understand more about it powers, and in many ways he has, but there will just be some things that he will never understand.

Like how does one exactly  _get_ to the speed force? He was struck by lightning, but surely that wasn't the only way, was it? He's heard of speedsters who were  _born_ with their powers, so how did the speed force become one with them? There had to be a pattern somewhere, Barry was sure, but he could never find it. Perhaps Eobard knew, but there was no way in Hell Barry was going to seek out his nemesis for a chat about the speed force.

And what about how fast you were able to go? When Barry first became The Flash, he was considerably slower than he is now, so did he become faster  _exactly?_ There was the theory that the more in tune you became to the speed force, the faster you become, which made sense in many ways, and yet it continued to bring up more questions. Like why do some speedsters start out faster than others? When Wally gained his powers, he was already as fast a Barry, which means he started _out_ faster than Barry. So why was that? Did the speed force decide to give Wally more power, or was it some completely unrelated thing? 

So, Barry Allen may not understand the force where his powers came from, but he does understand  _speed._ Speed is a science, something you can plug into a formula and get answers from. You can predict what will happen if you go a certain speed, and for how long, because it has scientific backing and proof. And if you knew Barry, you knew that he  _loved_ his 'scientific mumbo jumbo' as Hal would put it. 

That's also why the topic of Captain Marvel and his speed always peaked his interest. According to Marvel, his ability to fly and run at incredible speeds come from the Roman god Mercury, which left Barry with a question: did  _Marvel_ enter the speed force? There was never any lightning around him when he went fast like every other speedster he knew, but if he didn't, was there another force that made one go at super speed?

He guessed that Marvel's Mercury thing  _might_ have some merit, but at the same time he had doubt. He didn't like believing in something he couldn't see, and that especially meant gods that he learned in school as mythology. 

But then again, he knew aliens from Mars, a dude from a planet that had exploded and a race of hawk people with wings, so maybe it wasn't so far fetched that there were ancient gods still roaming around. Not that he's ever admit that.

He would  _ask_ Marvel, but the thing is, Barry is the definition of an awkward nerd that doesn't know how to talk to people some times. There's been time's where he promised himself he would talk to Marvel, and that he would do so in a casual way, but everytime he chickened out at the last minute. He had no problem talking to friends like Hal or Diana, but he didn't _know_ the other hero very well, a fact that he's not proud of. It just always seemed like there was never a good time to properly introduce himself and get to know the guy, which is why it felt weird to just suddenly walk up to him and ask about his powers and where they came from.

But then again, he wasn't even sure if he'd get answers from the dude anyway. From what he's seen and heard, Captain Marvel is quite secretive when it came to himself and personal details, and while he's briefly explained his powers before, Barry still wasn't sure if it counted as a personal matter or not. If it did, that means awkwardness that he wouldn't be sure how to defuse, but if it didn't, he'd kick himself for not asking sooner.

Now that he's thinking about it, maybe this mission he had to go on with Marvel  _was_ a good idea. It would give them time to finally break the ice with one another, and perhaps, if The Flash could get himself together, he could ask the other hero about his powers. Yeah, that sounded like a good idea.

The Flash glanced up at Marvel from where he was flying above him while he ran on the ground below. The mission they had was simple enough: investigate a strange power surge that had flared up in the Sahara Desert. If the surge was a threat, call the rest of the League and they'll all take it down together. It was kind of odd if Flash were to be honest, after all, if they were really  _that_ concerned about the surge, wouldn't they _all_ want to investigate? If they had no idea what this thing was, it seemed kind of weird that all you would do is send in two people and hope for the best. It kinda just felt like busy work if Flash were to be honest, but hey, he wasn't going to complain. It's been really boring for a few weeks now, no new villians trying to do their thing, no new alien invasions. It was like the whole universe decided that it's done with playing with Earth, and it found a new toy to play with.

That was a bad way to put it, but whatever, you get the point he's trying to make.

They were nearing the mainland of Africa now, and for that Flash was way happier than he probably should have been. But running on water was hard to do, especially for a long period of time. He would have gone faster, but he didn't want to leave him teammate behind in the dust, or in this case, vapor, while he forged ahead. There was a day he would have done that without hesitation, but now he was different. 

Would Captain Marvel be able to keep up with him, having the speed of a god and whatnot? Afterall, he always assumed the powers of a god outweighed the powers of a mortal, but who was he to say? Unlike with Superman (who he totally beat, by the way) he's never raced Marvel before. That would be an interesting experience, he would bet. 

Within another minute both Flash and Marvel were at the African coastline, Flash slowing down to catch his breath. That was easily one of the longest runs he's been on in a long while, but it felt good to just  _run._ Iris was always telling him he had too much contained energy for his own good, so this was a good way to get it all out. He looked to the sky again, admiring the beauty of the night sky without light pollution from any cities nearby. He very rarely ever sees this sight, and there was no way he was going to waste it. 

Marvel floated down next to him a few seconds later, and when Flash turned to look at him, his face was alight with childlike amazement. It wasn't a look that was uncommon on the hero's face, in fact it was one Flash saw more times than not, usually at other heroes or at landmarks from around the world like the Eiffel Tower and big Ben. To be honest, it sometimes threw Flash off when he saw that look, the surprise of seeing an adult that still has that look wonder and excitement, like they were still seeing the world for the first time. It was actually kind of refreshing. 

"Holy moly that's pretty," Marvel breathed, his mouth spreading into a wide grin. "I've never seen stars like this on Earth before..." he trailed off, titling his head to the side.

Flash wondered what he meant by that, a few of the rumors he's heard circling coming back to him. He wasn't one for gossip, but Hal still sometimes mentioned a few things he's heard, one of them being that Marvel was actually from Krypton just like Superman was. It would make since, with both heroes having similar powers and even looking similar in many ways, but Flash had a hard time of thinking Marvel as Kryptonian. Of course, until they actually tested out the theory there would be no 100 percent way of knowing. 

Perhaps he meant that he's seen the stars on Krypton, but never on Earth, where he ended up in Fawcett City? Or maybe it was something else, after all, he did still say his powers came from gods, and unlike Superman, is pretty much immune to magic. Also, there was no way that Marvel was over 25, meaning either Superman lied when he told them how young he was when Krypton blew up, or somehow someway a couple escaped the planet and had a child on Earth. Whatever it meant, Flash decided he would think in depth about later. Now, they both had a job to do.

"They are nice," Flash commented, taking note of the Milky Way he could see waving through the sky. "Though we should probably look for that power source Batman showed us before he gets mad again."

Marvel nodded, tearing his eyes away from the sky before looking out to the vast desert before them. "Do you remember where it is?" the red cladded hero asked, a bit of embarrassment in his voice. "I'm not good at names of places or remembering locations unless I go there all the time."

"Yeah, it's in a country called Mali. It's a little bit from here, but nothing like what we just did." A sudden idea came to Flash as he said this, and before he could talk himself out of it, he said, "it could be fun if he had a race there."

The other hero looked at him with surprised expression on his face, and for a few moments Flash thought he said the wrong thing. Surely Marvel wouldn't mind having a friendly race, right? I mean, there was nothing  _too_ personal about that, right? 

Just as Flash was about to say forget it and brush the whole thing off as if he had never said anything, Marvel replied with, "really? That sounds fun!"

Flash blinked, and without even realizing it, matched the smile on the others face. He just couldn't help it; Captain Marvel's entire personality was infectious and amazing to be around. He's heard stories from other heroes, all telling him that being around Marvel was like being around the human equivalent of sunshine, but until now he's never understood that. It was impossible  _not_ to see it now that Flash thought about it, I mean, even  _Batman_ himself grew relaxed and gave a small smile when Marvel was around. The dude was just so... happy all the time, and in this world filled with darkness, and this job constantly testing you, that wasn't very common to see anymore. 

"Or course it's fun! But don't feel too bad when I leave you in the dust," Flash smirked, a spike of competition going through him. Racing was so much more fun than a mission, and if they were able to do both, then why not?

Marvel's smile turned a little sinister at that, like he was hiding something and knew the people around him wouldn't figure it out. "I think you'll find it a little harder to keep up with me than you think." 

"Challenge accepted," Flash said eagerly, and with a grin at each other, they both set off. Sure, you could say a countdown would make it more fair and even, but it was easier this way. And plus, Marvel was just as anxious to push his speed as Flash was, and neither wanted to wait any longer than they had to.

Marvel took the skies, just as Flash knew he would, but unlike before he didn't go very high. Instead, he was only a few feet above his fellow hero, making it so that if Flash were to glance over he could see the other easily. Why he did this Flash didn't exactly know, but hey, who was he to judge? It would be fun to be able to see Marvel's reactions anyway.

Within a second Flash was already near the speed of sound, a speed he was used to simply cruising at when he was by himself. Marvel was keeping up a lot better than Flash thought he would, even if this was only the beginning of their race. In fact, if he looked hard enough, he swore that Marvel was  _smirking_ at him,  _daring_ him to go faster. It was a look he's seen Wally give him a million times before, right before the young speedster got his ass kicked.

Flash smirked back, and with a simple breath, he began to pick up speed. There was a  _BOOM_ from where he broke the sound barrier, and less than half a second later there was another one from where Marvel did the same. Neither hero seemed to be even  _trying_ yet, and it was only when Flash realized that it was the other hero controlling the tempo of speed, that he was the one edging Flash to go faster that he started to  _really_ put in some speed.

The dark desert became a blur of lightning and wind as both heroes ran through it, passing civilians startling at the sight of two red streaks came and went in the blink of an eye. Some would only pass it off as their imagination, while others would think there is supernatural forces behind it. Either way, neither hero noticed the civilians reactions (though they made sure to not run into them) as they attempted to outdo each other.

With another burst of speed, Flash pulled ahead, his lightning crackling and sizzling the ground beneath him. For a moment he wondered if the lightning would hurt Marvel before remembering that the hero could call down bolts of his own. It would be kind of weird if he was hurt by the same thing he could create, but that reassurance was enough to keep Flash's mind at ease.

For a few seconds, Flash could barely see Marvel trailing behind him, a look of concentration on his face as he tried to keep of with the speedster who was slowly pulling away from him. To Flash's surprise, Marvel wasn't just able to catch up, he actually able to burst  _ahead_ of him, leaving the speedster with a stunned look on his face. Grinding his teeth, Flash pumped his already shaking legs harder, his lightning briefly turning a nearly white color. It was enough to catch up to the other hero, but just barely. Neither of them had any idea of where they were anymore, in fact, Flash was positive they had left behind the Sahara a good bit ago, but he found that he couldn't care less. Despite the fact that he was tired and they had a mission to do, the speedster couldn't help but feel joy in racing his teammate. And he was sure the other felt the same way as well, given by his smile Flash often saw him with when they passed one another.

It was one of these times when Flash looked over that he nearly stumbled over his own feet, a wave of shock zipping down his spine. At first he thought it was some sort of speed after image, but neither he or Captain Marvel looking like the person he saw right above both of their heads. For one, his skin was much darker, a hazelnut brown that put Flash's pale skin to shame. His hair was also a dark brown color with crazy curls that reminded him much of Wally, even if that's where their similarities ended. When Flash looked down to his feet, he saw winged sandals, the wings flapping furiously like little birds.

Flash looked the man in the eye, seeing mischief and joy covering every inch of his face, struggling to keep up with Marvel now that his mind was occupied with something else. The man seemed to realize that, and after giving a little wave, he said, "you know, it's not everyday I see the products I've helped to make."

At that, Flash actually  _did_ stumble, and proceed to faceplant face first into a mountain of sand. And god  _damn_ did it hurt like a sonofabitch. 

The speedster groaned, to busy trying to convince himself that he did  _not_ just see and heard what he thought he saw when Marvel worriedly hovered above him, having immediately stopped when he realized his fellow hero was no longer beside him. Marvel shook Flash's shoulder, asking if he was alright, when said speedster sat up and instantly demanded, "who the  _fuck_ was flying right next to you?"

The red cladded hero simply looked at him with a confused look on his face, trying to understand the question he was being asked. "What do you mean 'who was flying next to me? There was only you and me..."

Flash shook his head, mumbling to himself. "No, I saw him right above you. The dude was wearing these sandals with wings on him, looked at me and said, 'it's not everyday I see the products I've helped to make.' What the heck does that even  _mean,_ I mean of all the things to say to someone and you say  _that._ Like what the Hell."

Marvel tilted his head much like before, a grin appearing on his face as he giggled. "Wings on his sandals? If anything, I would say that almost sounds like Mercury, bit I've never actually met or seen the guy so," he shrugged, rubbing the back of his next. "I'm not sure why you would have seen him, anyway. Are you sure you're okay, Flash? That was quite the stumble you took.

The speedster nodded numbly, processing everything he could. That dude he saw was possibly  _Mercury?_ As in, the mythological Roman god that supposedly have Marvel his super speed? The guy that looked as if he was racing alongside them and having the time of his life was could have very much been an all powerful being that could snap his fingers and decide he was worthy of an eternity in Hell?

What. The.  _Fuck._

This was why Flash hated trying to explain magic and its rules. There was too much to keep track of and half the time those who wielded it were either psychopathic idiots or all powerful gods that no one knew about or understood. It was like trying to fit a tiny piece of string through a specific hole and around it were other holes that could also fit the string, but only that one hole would actually make everything work. Sure, the others  _might_ make it work, but not really, and the more and more you tried the more you thought not one hole would actually make the whole thing fit together perfectly like you wanted it to.

He was getting a headache just trying to think about it.

"Where are we, anyway?" Flash asked, accepting Marvel's hand to stand up. The other hero simply shrugged.

"We're not in the Sahara anymore, as far as I know."

"Well then," the speedster brushed off the sand that still covered parts of his suit. "We better head back and do our survey thing, though I'm pretty sure Batman's going to be pissed at both of us no matter what now."

"You could say that again," Marvel said under his breath as they both prepared to head back, this time going at a much slower speed and not racing one another. It was fun while it lasted, but Flash was glad that they had both reached the consensus that it was over for now (even if Marvel insisted that he had won, though he wasn't sure if it even counted anymore.)

And if Flash saw the man again, Mercury or not, he never mentioned it.                         


	7. The Heart of Billy Batson

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this! It's been a lot of fun to write it. Here we go~

Billy Batson, otherwise known as Captain Marvel in the form he was in now, was not having a good day.

It started off ordinary enough, finding his last granola bar in his cabinet (he hasn't really found the time to go shopping) attempted to teach himself to read a bit better with some abandoned books he found, did some hero work as his other self, and was even able to cash in some money from working a few odd jobs here and there. All and all, a normal day that shouldn't have been as terrible as it turned out to be.

In his superhero form, Captain Marvel, Billy was nearly invincible. The powers of six gods will do that to you, but apparently there will still weaknesses he had yet to find. Which was why when Billy was finishing up gathering the latest criminals trying to rob the Fawcett City Bank for the police, he didn't expect for a small little cylinder to be dropped right in front of him. Billy didn't know if it was dangerous or not, so he picked it up and flew away from the knocked out criminals on the floor. Just as he did this however, a teal colored gas started pouring from the cylinder and wrapped itself around Billy's head, filling his nostrils and lungs. 

When nothing happened at first, the boy took it as a sign that maybe this was meant for someone else, someone who  _couldn't_ withstand poisonous gasses, when his entire form began to sway. He fell from his place in the air and crashed onto the floor, his vision swimming dangerously fast, strength vanishing as more and more of the gas entered his system. He could only move his eyes as something above him caught his attention.

The last thing he saw before everything went black was a sinister smirk glaring down at him. 

 

 

 

Batman sat in the Watchtower, looking down over the Earth as it passed below him. It was a beautiful sight, one that he was sure he would never tire of. There was just something so calming about looking down and knowing that everything that mattered was right there, protected and loved by the heroes that lived there. It was an odd thought he knew, but it gave the dark knight a sense of control when everything around him seemed out of it. 

_"Now entering, Superman,"_ came the monotone voice of a computer, announcing the arrival of the man of steel. Batman looked over his shoulder to see the hero walk to his chair in the conference room where all of the Justice League meetings took place, one which would begin in another 20 minutes. The dark knight nodded at his fellow hero before turning back to the Earth, hoping for some more peace and quiet before the others started to arrive. Thankfully, Superman seemed to understand this need and didn't say a word as he sat down, taking the time to enjoy the silence as well. Work at the Daily Planet has given him some trouble lately, but it wasn't anything too out of the ordinary. 

Minutes later, Cyborg and Wonder Woman appeared as well, chatting casually about history documentaries and other generally common things. And when Green Lantern and The Flash came in not two minutes before the meeting was supposed to officially start, Batman knew his peace was over. The two just never knew how to talk in a  _normal_ voice volume, something that the dark knight wishes they could understand in one way or another.

Batman finally tore his gaze away from Earth, sitting down in his own chair and taking the moment to look around at the other League members. There was only going to be seven of them here for the meeting today-

Wait. Then why was there only six of them here?

The dark knight narrowed his eyes, though no one could see it behind his cowl, counting everyone that was here. Superman, Cyborg, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, The Flash, and himself. Someone was missing, and a quick glance at the time showed him that the meeting was supposed to start a minute ago. Despite the obvious jokes and jabs at those like Flash for being late to everything, it was very rare for a Justice League member to be late to a meeting unless they explicitly told him about it. And Batman already knew the one who was missing said  _nothing_ about being late today.

Captain Marvel. As far as Batman could tell, the red cladded hero has never once missed a meeting, and in fact many times Captain Marvel will get to the Watchtower a few  _hours_ before the meeting actually starts. So how was it possible that he wasn't here?

Something that felt like cold water trickled down his spine as he wondered, a sudden fear gripping Batman. Normally, he wouldn't worry about it too much, just give the hero a talk and a little intimidation and everything would be fine. But it wasn't Captain Marvel he feared for, no, it was  _Billy._ Something must have happened to the boy in order for him to not be able to come. Captain Marvel may have the powers of gods, but Billy Batson sure as Hell didn't. All it would take would be one fucked up person that surprised him for the boy to go down, and despite Fawcett City's glowing and pristine reputation, he knew that there were more than enough shit shows running around there that would gladly take advantage of a young boy.

Keeping a voice of calm, the dark knight asked, "does anyone know where Captain Marvel is?"

The conversation between the others died down, all of them shaking their head or saying that no, they didn't know where the Captain was. "Are you sure he's supposed to be at this meeting, Batman? It's possible that there was mix up somewhere," The Flash commented casually, as if he could sense the unease coming from the dark knight. 

Batman clenched his jaw, the cold feeling down his spine freezing into ice. "I'm positive, Flash. I talked to him two days ago to confirm it, in fact. And don't try and tell me he might just be late, because in the year and a half he's been apart of the Justice League he hasn't been late to a single meeting. Call me paranoid, but something about this whole thing just doesn't feel right."

"How about we try and contact him if you're so worried, Batman?" Superman suggested. "We shouldn't jump to a conclusion just yet. Besides, if Captain Marvel really is in trouble, then he can probably handle himself."

But that was the thing. Captain Marvel could go toe to toe with Superman no problem, but if someone got ahold of Billy Batson... Batman wasn't sure if he would ever forgive himself. After all, he was the only one in the League that knew of the Captain's identity, and if the others found out that he hid the fact that there was a 12 year old child on the League... well, he didn't want to think about  _that._ Marvel would most likely be kicked out the League immediately, and then maybe even Batman himself. After all, how could you trust someone who willing put a young child in danger, even if they had a young sidekick just a few years older?

In the back of his mind, the dark knight remembered the conversation he and Marvel had that night one year ago, when he told Batman that even if he was kicked out of the Justice League he would still protect people that couldn't protect themselves. It didn't matter if the boy had their approval, as far as he was concerned, his job was to help, just like any hero would do. That heart made him popular with civilians, but could also make him a very large target.

"Computer, contact Captain Marvel," Batman said after he managed to unclench his jaw. 

_"Contacting, Captain Marvel,"_ the robotic voice echoed. After two minutes of nothing, it came back again.  _"Unable to reach Captain Marvel at this time. Please try again later."_

Batman shoved his chair back, standing up stiffly and with his whole form tense. The room exploded into sound, some like Wonder Woman and Superman thinking that the dark knight should calm down before he does anything, and others such as Green Lantern and Cyborg instantly siding with Batman in thinking something was extremely wrong with this whole thing. The Flash just stood there with an odd look on his face, as if he were concentrating on something, staring intensely behind Batman at the giant screen.

"Guys," the speedster said, quietly at first, but no one seemed to hear him, especially not as Batman began walking out of the room.  _"Guys!"_

All of their attention snapped to him, their faces falling when they saw what The Flash was staring at. 

On the screen was a call from someone. A call from none other than Captain Marvel. It could have just been a check in, but the heroes didn't think so. Batman practically ran over to the computer that controlled the screen, accepting the call. The entire screen was then filled with a video call, the majority of it filled with a dark room.

In the center however, was a tied up and knocked out Captain Marvel trapped inside a glass dome.

_"Hello there, Justice League!"_ cheered an overly enthusiastic voice from off screen, instantly setting everyone even more on edge. Batman was already trying to trace the call, knowing that since it was from Marvel's communicator that it would give off a certain signal that would make it easier to track. Everyone else knew this too, but it didn't stop the anxiety that gripped at them at seeing one of their strongest heroes simply  _trapped_ like an animal. 

_"As you can see, Captain Marvel here is quite comfy here, so I wouldn't worry too much about him. I only want one thing from him- well, more like two things if you're gonna get picky."_ From off screen there was the sounds of someone struggling, a young boy if they all had to guess. This made Superman grip the table below him so hard that it started to bend, knowing that his teammate _and_ a child were in this psycho's hands making his skin crawl. But they couldn't do anything yet, not while Batman was still trying to figure out where the call was coming from.

The child was shoved in front of the camera, his face covered in dirt and scratches and he was wearing clothes that were threads away from falling apart. His dark eyes darted around him constantly, and when they landed on the Captain he softly croaked out,  _"Captain Marvel?"_

_"That's right, kiddo! Now you get to meet your hero, from your own city! Doesn't that sound great?"_

The kid trembled, furiously shaking his head, and he kept glancing back at the red cladded hero. He looked like he desperately wanted to go over to Marvel and help him somehow, but was too scared to. Another person came on screen, the one the heroes assumed that captured Marvel in the first place, but he looked surprisingly  _young._ Probably just graduated from college if any of them had to guess.

_"You see,_ Justice League,  _out of all of your members, no one knows who the good old Captain_ is.  _Only Black Adam does, but he's not going to give that away any time soon, and neither will the Captain himself. That is,"_ a crazed smiled appeared on his face, revealing a single gold tooth.  _"He won't do so_ willingly."

Gas started filling the chamber Captain Marvel was in the same moment Batman said, "I have it." Immediately the rest of the League's communicators went off, sending the location the dark knight found. It was an abandoned warehouse in the outskirts of Fawcett City, so old that it didn't even exist on any maps of the city.

"Let's go find us a Captain," The Flash mumbled to himself before all of them sprung into action. 

 

 

Billy awoke with a grown, his senses filled with something that smelled an awful lot like rotten eggs. When he opened his eyes, all he could see for several seconds was a jade colored gas, reminding him of the teal one that knocked him out-

Wait, where was he? All he could remember was taking down some criminals and then... nothing. Someone had managed to capture him, someone with knowledge on how to knock out Captain Marvel without ever laying a hand on him. Billy never even  _realized_ that was possible, given that pretty much everything he's ever gone up against has never left a physical mark (well, at least on the Captain's body. His regular, kid body had enough scars to make a seasoned war veteran queasy.)

When the gas finally began to clear, he could see the faint outline of two people, one maybe a year or two older than he was, and another a young adult. "Hello?" he called out to them, trying to stand up only to find out that he was tied to the chair he was sitting in. They were easily broken with the strength of Hercules, but when Billy stood up, he quickly found that he wasn't just in a strange dark room with people he knew nothing about.

He was trapped in a glass dome in a strange dark room with people he knew nothing about.

"Well hello, Captain Marvel! Welcome to your stay at the Dome! Don't worry, it won't be to terribly long, that is," one of the people, the older one, said with a creepy smile on his face. It was the same one he saw before he passed out, Billy realized. "I guess how long you stay here adds up to how long you take to do what I want!" With a fick out his wrist, there was a deadly sharp knife in the man's hand, and the kid next to him was pressed against his chest with said knife at his throat. Billy could feel dread fill his veins as a single bead of blood ran down the boy's next from the press of the knife, instantly trying to break down the glass with a mighty shove. But the glass didn't even budge, and the man tsked at him for the attempt.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. You see, this glass was specially made to hold freaks of nature like you, Superman, and even Wonder Woman if need be! Besides, if you keep trying to find a way out," he dug the blade into the boy's throat, "little Ricky here is going to get  _hurt._ Now there are a few things I want from  _you_ and your  _Justice League."_

Billy set his jaw, looking away from the terrified boy right into the eyes of the man. He knew from experience that direct eye contact could make people uncomfortable and more vulnerable, and if he couldn't get past this glass, he might as well do whatever he can. The man barely seemed to notice this change, instead deciding to keep spilling whatever villain monologue he had. All he could hope for to save him and the boy was the other League members, and from his quick glance around the room earlier, that  _could_ be the case. It seemed this his communicator was used to contact the Justice League given by projected image if the meeting room in the Watchtower, something that could only be seen if you had a direct link to it.

"What do you want?" Billy said as calmly as he could manage, the courage of Achilles helping settle his nerves. He could make it through this. He's been through much,  _much_ worse, and that was when he was  _not_ Captain Marvel.

"What I want? Well that's simple enough." The man walked towards the glass dome until his nose nearly touched it, his crazed eyes becoming very clear to Billy. "I want you to turn into your human self, the one without all the magic mumbo jumbo and crazy powers. Then, I'm going to reveal your identity to the entire world and kill you. And if you refuse to do so?" The man cut a thin line into Ricky's neck, more and more blood beginning to pour out of it. Not enough to be dangerous, yet, but enough to make the hero understand that this man was serious about what he was talking about.

"If I do this, will he be let go?" Billy guestered to the boy, who looked up at him with wide eyes that were pleading not to do what this mad man asked of him, eyes that said he believed his life wasn't worth Captain Marvel's.

But that's where he was wrong. To Billy Batson, everyone's life, no matter how seemingly insignificant or important, was more important than his. That's one of the main reasons he became a hero in the first place, one of the main reasons the Wizard choose him as the Champion of Magic, because no matter what he's been through, no matter what he's seen, he's never once put someone else before himself. And he's been told  _many_ of times by those around him that his big hear would get him killed, everyone from Black Canary to that older lady that runs a diner down on Fox Street. 

Well, he's already decided that there are worse ways to go. And plus, it wasn't like anyone would mourn the death of Billy Batson, an 11 year old homeless kid that's just trying to survive. Everyone would mourn Captain Marvel, especially Fawcett City, who had grown to love their hero with every fiber of their beings. He was unlike most heroes where you could walk into their city and  _everyone_ you met would have something nice to say about him, no matter how small or insignificant. 

So yes, Billy would give up his identity and life for this boy, this boy for, if he had to guess, lived on the streets just like he did. This mad man probably thought no one would miss him either, and on the slim chance his plan didn't go the way he wanted it to he could cut his throat and move on like it was nothing. But Billy still wanted confirmation that he would stay safe during all of this, no matter what happened.

The man rolled his eyes like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Of  _course_ I'll him him go, what do you think I am, a monster?" he chuckled at the end of his question, and once again Billy was struck with just how  _crazed_ he sounded. The only other thing he's heard sound like that was the Joker, but there was no way this man was Batman's dolled up villian. For one, he was too young, which was saying something because to the young boy, pretty much everyone he came across is old to him.

"Well, it's kind of hard to tell, seeing that you kidnapped a kid and me and is now threatening both with death," Billy couldn't help but say dryly, narrowing his eyes. The man stopped laughing at that, his crazed eyes turning cruel and mouth curving into a snarl. He was just about to retort with something else, probably a threat or something, Billy interrupted. "Now, let him go, and I'll do what you asked." 

The man hummed, the anger from before fading to simmer just beneath his skin, ready to come back in full force if need be. "How about you do your little magic trick and  _then_ I let him go? After all, I've gotta make sure you stay true to your word."

Billy resisted the urge to slam his head against the glass, wanting to appear as complacent as possible, though he knew it would be a hard thing to do. How did this guy ever find out how he went between his mortal form and his hero form? Not even  _Batman_ really even knew, though he suspected the dark knight had a few theories, one of them which would probably be accurate. Only two people on Earth knew how he got his powers, and that was him and Black Adam, and there was no way his greatest nemesis would ever tell a mortal, even if he wasn't dead. Or, as far as Billy knew, he was dead. Being's like him had a habit of coming back to life whenever they chose. 

"Fine." Billy took a deep breath, preparing himself for what he was about to do. All he could hope was that this man would stay true to his word, and that somehow, someway the Justice League found his body. He also hoped that Batman wouldn't be  _too_ mad at him... and for that matter, the just of the Justice League as well. He kind of regret never telling them his secret, even if he knew it would have been a crap storm to try and make it through all of their questions and demands.

With that thought, the Champion of Magic lifted his head to the sky, and with a mighty shout called the name,  _"SHAZAM!"_

Instantly there was a bolt of lightning arcing down to Billy, just like every other time he called out the Wizard's name. But unlike any other time, he was inside a building, meaning the magical lightning had to shatter the ceiling above him and the glass that surrounded him, and that it did. Within a heartbeat there were pieces of debris and shards of glass raining around him, and the familiar feel of the lightning struck his body and took away his powers. It hurt every time he did this, the path of the electricity taking the same route every time, making the scar that covered his entire back, arms, neck and parts of his chest flare with pain. But he didn't mind anymore, like he used to. The pain was almost comforting in a way he couldn't describe, the one way he could still connect to the long dead Wizard that gave him this power in the first place.

The man stumbled back in shock, Ricky's eyes wide with amazement as he saw his hero do this. He's seen the lightning Captain Marvel would summon the T.V when he was fighting villains, but this was  _much_ different, this lightning felt more  _powerful_ and  _purposeful._ It entranced the young boy, even as little shards of glass stuck into his skin and made small drops of blood appear.

When the the smoke finally faded away, leaving behind the one who held all of the powers of the gods, everything else in the world seemed to move in slow motion. Both the man and Ricky gasped when they saw a boy, no older than 12, right in the place where Captain Marvel was not one second ago. He was much smaller and skinnier than any boy should be, much like Ricky himself, with ragged black hair and blue eyes that shinned with lightning that his other persona created so easily. 

"What...  _no no no no no,"_ the man stuttered, tensing around Ricky with panic in his voice. "That- that can't be right! It's a trick, a dirty, twisted  _trick!_ And do you know what happens to tricksters!?" He put even more pressure on Ricky's neck, making him choke as he attempted to stay away from it's sharp edge. The boy who used to be Captain Marvel's eyes widened, and just as he was about to lunge at the man, the sound of a small explosion filled the building.

Billy yelped, covering his head with his hands as more debris came raining down, though this time in much smaller amounts. The dust in the air made him cough, and when he looked up he could see the outline of other people, other people who looked surprisingly familiar.

One of them came right down next to him, their pointed ears and long black cape making it very obvious who it was.

"B-Batman?"

 

 

When Batman saw the lightning strike the warehouse, he knew instantly that there would be trouble. Whenever there was lightning, there was usually Captain Marvel, but when it was  _that_ lightning, a singular, giant strike, there was Billy Batson. Meaning now there would be two young children trying to deal with a madman that had no problem with killing either of them. Knowing the kid, he probably was going to sacrifice himself in order to save the other kid, but there was no way in  _Hell_ Batman was letting that happen.

The other members of the League saw the lightning as well, honing in on it as quickly as possible. The Flash was already there, but was waiting for the rest of them to get there, knowing that they had no idea what to expect. When Superman called out that there was a hole in the ceiling of the warehouse, all of them immediately went for it, seeing as it was the easiest way to get it. 

The dark knight turned off the flying motorcycle he had created for occasions when he had to fly with the other heroes, falling gracefully into the hole and landing in a pile of dust and small pieces of the ceiling, turning on the radars in his eyes so that he could see better. 

"B-Batman?" asked a small yet strong voice, one belonging to a young child. The dark knight focused on where the voice came from, seeing a boy with dark hair and nearly glowing eyes staring up at him in wonder. It took him a second, but Batman realized why he knew those eyes, eyes that could only belong to one other person.

Captain Marvel, AKA, Billy Batson. 

Before Batman could reply, the others came in around him, Wonder Woman, Superman and Green Lantern flying down, and The Flash running in with Cyborg. They all took a moment to survey the warehouse, Superman instantly walking up to Billy to make sure he was okay, but the boy hardly seemed to notice. Instead, his eyes widened with what looked like realization, blurting out, "where did they go?"

"Where did who go?" asked Wonder Woman gently, trying to soothe the boy as he frantically began to move around.

"Ricky and that man, the one that brought us here!" Billy's eyes landed on a set of stairs that were on the far left of the warehouse, calling out, "there! They're over there!" and trying to run towards what he saw. Batman immediately stopped the boy from going anywhere by putting a hand on his shoulder and squeezing, trying to tell him to sit this one out. The dark knight knew the boy would understand what he was asking, but he also knew he wouldn't be too happy about that. Even though Billy Batson had none of the powers of Captain Marvel, he still had the same heart that was five sizes too big for his own good. 

"Stay here, got it?" Batman said sternly, watching the conflicted look on Billy's face as he struggled to take the order. But eventually he nodded, and with that Batman was running to the stairs, the other League members following him. The man with the boy they had seen earlier had just disappeared onto what could only be assumed to be the roof.

"Hey Bats, where's Captain Marvel?" Flash called out to him as he used his grappling hook to get up the stairs quicker, the speedster not far behind him. 

"Worry about it later," Batman growled back, hoping the other would just take it and leave him. Surprisingly, he did, but even now the dark knight could feel the questions bubbling up in the others throats. Somehow he would have to convince them that Captain Marvel got away, but already there were ideas popping into his head. For example, the lightning could be used as a way to explain how he wasn't here in some way. But that would still leave the question on why the other boy, the one they didn't see with the man who captured them, was there. 

Damnit. Why couldn't it ever be easy?

It actually could be, if Batman were to be honest with himself. All he had to do was tell the League that Captain Marvel was actually an 12 year old boy, but he couldn't do that. It wasn't his secret to tell. If Billy wanted to, he would do it himself, but Batman wouldn't betray his trust like that.

In seconds they were all on the roof of the warehouse, and on the very far edge of it they could all see the man and the boy. The man had a knife in his hand, and the tip of said knife was positioned right over the boy's heart, ready to plunge in at any moment. There was a wild look in the man's eyes, one that showed no regard for the boy's life that was on the line. It almost looked like it was a game for him, on that he was having a ton of fun playing. 

Cyborg took a step forward, his arm raised, no doubt ready to set off something in his wide range of arsenal, but he stopped when the man tsked at him, a wide smile growing on his face. 

"I wouldn't to that," the man said, taking a step closer to the edge. "Not if you want this boy to survive, that is," he gestured to the knife. "After all, I think I can move this knife a lot faster than any of you will be able to react, even if you do have The Flash on your side."

"What do you want, anyway?" demanded Green Lantern, his form slowly glowing brighter and brighter green. Batman knew that meant he was just stalling for time, either waiting for one of them to come up with a plan or thinking up one of his own. If he could get the man talking, they would have more of a chance to help the young civilian that he's trapped. It was actually a good plan, when you thought about it. The Lantern was much smarter than he let on sometimes, and even Batman forgot about that from time to time.

"Didn't I tell you already?" the man asked with a irritated tone in his voice. He had in fact told them what he wanted, but he didn't need to know that. He just needed to keep talking. "I wanted to know who Captain Marvel is... though I guess I know that now, anyway," he laughed, a sinister smirk making its way onto his face. "And let me say, it's got to the best thing I've ever found out in my life!"

Batman felt his nerves prickle at that, knowing that this mad man had probably threatened Billy with this kids life if he didn't reveal who he was. It was a sick, twisted thing to do, but it was expected of someone like this. 

However, the attention of the rest of the League was immediately peaked when they heard this, as if they suddenly understood what those words meant, realizing that Marvel has revealed his secret identity to this man. They've all been curious about their teammates identity for a long while now, even if they never pushed for it. Rumors about anything and everything that came with Marvel has been thought of, everything from him being from Krypton to him actually being a thousand year old god. None of them have ever come close to the truth however, which was the only reason Batman had never given them any thought.

The dark knight stealthily, slid a Batarang out of his sleeve, letting it rest in his palm. If he could get close enough to the man, he could knock the knife out of his hand. If the man decided to jump there were many options to solve that, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern or Superman flying to catch them or Flash running to them, or even Cyborg created something to cushion their fall. 

Just as Batman was about to start creeping forward, an all to familiar voice came through.

"Hey! Leave them alone!"

The dark knight watched, stunned as he saw Billy charge in between the Justice League and the man, realizing too late that they should have pulled him back. The others realized this as well, but when Flash went to run for the boy, he froze when he saw the man press the knife into the boy's skin, just enough to pierce his clothing. The speedsters eyes darted to Batman's, hoping for a plan of some sort to get them through this, but the dark knight was at a loss. They couldn't do anything without potentially getting Billy in the crossfire, or getting the other boy hurt.

"It's me you want, so come and take it!" Billy continued, slowing down until he was about 15 feet away from the man. "You gave me your word that you would let Ricky go if I changed, so do it!" He spread his arms wide as if to challenge the man. Even without seeing his eyes Batman could imagine the defiance and determination that would be there, the commitment of a hero staying proud and true.

"What the Hell is he talking about?" Cyborg asked, his one eye narrowing in surprise. You could practically  _see_ the gears working in his mind, trying to piece it all together. If Batman were to guess, he would put it together rather quickly. 

The man hummed, titling his head as his eyes flashed. "I guess I did give you my word didn't I? That I would kill you to save the boy," he dragged the knife up to the boy's neck, lightly brushing the blade back and forth. "But that was before your little Justice League interrupted us wasn't it? Oh well," he shrugged, taking a step that would take him all the way to the edge. "I guess I could still just  _let him go."_

Before any of them could think to stop it, the man was jumping of the roof, the boy it tow with him. It took Superman barely a moment to snap out of his shock but before he could do anything, a voice called out,  _"SHAZAM!"_ Within a millisecond there was the unmistakable crack and flash of lightning, and a gust of wind that Superman knew would be made by someone flying at incredible speed. 

A second later, the boy that had been in the man's grasp on on the roof, gasping and shaking with nerves and shock. And right next to him... was Captain Marvel. All of the League members, even Batman, were left bewildered at the sight of the teammate they had come here to help save, his appearance seemingly coming out of nowhere. There was also what could only be described as a halo around his body, one made of lightning and pure power that they've all seen before, though only once.

Captain Marvel looked up at his fellow heroes, his eyes sparking with lightning, a gaze they recognized from before meeting theirs. A shy smile came to his lips, and in that moment they all knew just why the red cladded hero would sometimes act so naive and innocent, or where his child like comments came from.

"Hi there, guys," Marvel said hesitantly, before leveling his gaze and raising his chin up.

"You know me as Captain Marvel, but," his smile crossed his whole face, one that showed off all the heart that was somehow packed into his body, one that seemed to forget that he was the avatar for the gods.

"You can call me Billy."                                           

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Feel free to leave a comment.
> 
> ~Magical_Devil_Alex


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